Batman: The Dark Knight #18Review

The bigger this Mad Hatter story gets, the worse it is. What we have here is a tale that could have been a one-shot, a done-in-one, and it has been stretched to encompass several issues. The dialogue is fine and the art is pretty good, but the story it self is a snoozer and one that should have been put to bed a long time ago. Can this just end already?

Gregg Hurwitz is doing the same thing he did with his previous Scarecrow arc and dragging this thing out. Perhaps to fill a trade or maybe just in an attempt to give the story more weight. Either way, it's killed whatever momentum this tale had and become a chore to get through each month. This issue gives us the origin -- kinda -- of the Mad Hatter, and it's a weird one. I won't spoil anything for you here, but I will say that the motivations and actions of Hatter's parents make zero sense. Who is the audience for this book? Who wants this story?

Ethan Van Sciver does some nice work on the art in this issue. He struggles a bit with non-costumed characters, but when Batman or Mad Hatter get panel time, it looks great. Unfortunately, this issue also has a guest appearance from an incredibly strange looking Catwoman. Her poses, movement, and ability to mash her breasts into Batman without touching any other part of him are downright bizarre. Like the story itself, Catwoman's appearance is out of place and largely pointless.